Politics
A comprehensive guide to studying Politics at university.
- "Gives you a real insight into differing views and perceptions about the world"
- – Meriel, 3 year *BA Politics Student, Newcastle*
- "The study of different ideologies and ways of thinking really opens your mind to different perspectives and provides lots of opportunity for interesting debate"
- - Emily, 1 year *BA Politics, KCL*
- "Very interdisciplinary and varied, lots to learn and different avenues to explore"
- – Aarrin, 2 year *BA Politics, York*
- "There aren’t very many contact hours. I often only have one lecture or seminar a day, so you might not always feel like you’re getting your money’s worth"
- – Meriel, 3 year *BA Politics Student, Newcastle*
- "Sometimes it all feels a little bit too theoretical and abstract. It would be nice to spend more time understanding how the theories apply to the real world."
- - Emily, 1 year *BA Politics Student, KCL*
- "There are lots of very strong opinions in seminars, so students can get quite riled and emotional. It can be quite intense and confrontational."
- – Aarrin, 2 year *BA Politics Student, York*
- "Can sometimes feel too independent with too little engagement with other people. You spend a lot of time researching for yourself."
- - Ben, 2 year *BA Philosophy, Politics and Economics, Oxford*
Studying Politics at a UK university delves into the complex world of political systems, ideologies, and policies. Students explore the dynamics of power, governance, and public policy, gaining insights into the forces shaping our societies.
Modules cover a range of topics such as political theory, international relations, comparative politics, and public administration.
The curriculum often involves analyzing historical and contemporary political events, honing critical thinking and research skills. Students engage in lively debates, discussing everything from global conflicts to domestic policy reforms.
Fieldwork and internships offer practical experience, while seminars and lectures by leading academics and practitioners enrich the learning experience. A degree in Politics opens doors to careers in government, international organizations, journalism, and beyond, where graduates can influence and shape political discourse and decision-making.
Politics is a very open-ended subject that equips you with a large number of transferrable skills. As such, there is no one particular area that politics graduates go into.
- Many graduates are interested into going into public life in some way. For: non-profits, NGOs and political parties are always very popular destinations.
- Many politics students go into the Civil Service, political research or journalism.
- Politics graduates also go into business, such as management consultancies, banking, HR and other business-related roles.
- Some politics students go on to take a law conversion courses and pursue a career in the law.
Due to this large array of career destinations for politics graduates, it is hard to pinpoint what is ‘normal’.
That said the top employer destinations include: Civil Service Fast Stream; think tanks such as the Institute for Public Policy Research; law firms such as Slaughter and May; management consultancies such as McKinsey.
Note: Many of these cited employers are highly competitive. Politics is often just one of many subjects they take students from. As such, the prestige of the university your degree comes from and your degree grade are often far more important factors than the subject you study.